Cultural Exchange by Langston Hughes

In the Quarter of the NegroesWhere the doors are doors of paperDust of dingy atomsBlows a scratchy sound.Amorphous jack-o'-Lanterns caperAnd the wind won't wait for midnightFor fun to blow doors down.By the river and the railroadWith fluid far-off goindBoundaries bind unbindingA whirl of whisteles blowing.No trains or steamboats going--Yet Leontyne's unpacking.

In the Quarter of the NegroesWhere the doorknob lets in LiederMore than German ever bore,Her yesterday past grandpa--Not of her own doing--In a pot of collard greensIs gently stewing.

Pushcarts fold and unfoldIn a supermarket sea.And we better find out, mama,Where is the colored laundromatSince we move dup to Mount Vernon.